This invention relates to a baseball bat for children. More specifically, this invention relates to child-sized baseball bat that has a pressuizable, external hitting zone to selectively control the trampoline effect when a ball is struck by the bat. The invention also relates to a bat with an expandable external hitting zone which may be inflated to increase the circumference of the barrel to make hitting a ball easier.
Hitting a pitched ball with a bat has been often described as the most difficult feat in all of sports. The difficulty lies in the fact that both the thrown ball and the bat are round. To successfully hit a thrown ball, the batter must time his or her swing to meet the ball at the proper point in space and time. In addition, the ball should be struck along its center axis at or near the center axis of the barrel of the bat.
Children have a particularly difficult time learning to hit a ball with a bat. Lacking fully developed physical coordination, children struggle to master the timing necessary to hit a thrown ball. They may become dejected and move on to another sport. Even when they successfully time the swing of the bat to the velocity of the thrown ball, the results are not always positive. A ball hit above or below its center axis will travel a much shorter distance than one hit on its center axis. Correspondingly, if the bat contacts the ball too far away from the center axis of the barrel, the results will be equally unsatisfactory.
Another problem faced by children is limited availability of fields or lots in which to hone their hitting skills. Many children play in small backyards or fields adjoining buildings or streets. To the talented child, the challenge may not be in hitting the ball, but in not hitting it so far that it endangers nearby windows, pedestrians, or motorists.
Bats previously known in this art have used an internal bladder in the barrel to strengthen the bat or dampen vibrations caused when the bat strikes the ball. These bats provide no advantage to a child learning to hit a ball. They do not allow the child to increase the size of the barrel or hitting zone of the bat to make hitting a ball easier. They also do not allow control, either by increasing or decreasing, of the trampoline effect that occurs when the bat impacts a ball, which will correspondingly increase the distance the ball will travel when struck. A stronger bat has little usefulness to a child who is unable to hit a thrown ball. Similarly, a vibration dampening device only comes into play if the ball is struck with the bat. A child who is unable to master the feat of hitting will derive no benefit from such a device. In short, the added strength and vibration dampening provided by prior art bats offer little to the beginning batsman.
Nor do the prior art bats allow a child who is proficient at hitting a thrown ball to decrease the distance the ball will travel when struck. Such an adjustment will allow children of all levels to practice and play on small fields and lots where increased distance may be undesirable.
The need remains in the children""s sporting goods industry for a bat that will help children to learn how to hit a pitched ball and at the same time reward less than perfect efforts. A need also remains for a bat that allows children to practice and play in small areas where a ball traveling a long distance will pose a safety risk. The primary objective of this invention is to meet these needs.
More specifically, an object of the invention is to provide a bat having a pressurizable, external hitting zone to selectively control the trampoline effect when a ball is struck by the bat. By adjustably controlling the trampoline effect through increasing or decreasing the pressure in the hitting zone, the distance a struck ball travels can be effectively controlled.
Another object of the invention is to provide a bat of the character described having a spirally wrapped exterior tubing around the barrel of the bat which may be adjustably pressurized to control the trampoline effect that occurs when the bat impacts a ball.
Another object of the invention is to provide a bat of the character described having spirally wrapped, expandable tubing around the barrel of the bat to define an exterior hitting zone which may be adjustably pressurized to vary the effective diameter of the bat.
A further object of the invention is to provide a bat having a hand-operated air pump built into the handle that allows convenient and efficient pressurization of the exterior hitting zone on the bat""s barrel.
An additional object of the invention is to provide a bat having a pressure relief valve that allows the use to decrease the volume and/or pressure of air in the tubing wrapped exteriorly around the barrel, thereby decreasing the circumference of the barrel and/or the trampoline effect that occurs when the bat impacts a ball.
In summary, a children""s baseball bat with a pressurizable, external hitting zone to selectively control the trampoline effect when a ball is struck by the bat. The hitting zone is provided by expandable tubing wrapped spirally around the barrel of the bat and connected to a manual air pump built into the handle of the bat to increase air pressure in the tubing. A pressure relief valve connected to the tubing allows the user to decrease air pressure in the hitting zone to control the trampoline effect or to decrease the circumference of the barrel.
Other and further objects of the invention, together with the features of novelty appurtenant thereto, will appear in the description of the drawings.